In Los Angeles, U.S. Attorney Thomas O’Brien announced the arrest of Robert Bourseau, 74, of Rancho Mirage, Calif., the former co-owner and executive with the City of Angels Medical Center in Los Angeles, according to a news release from the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California.
Mr. Bourseau allegedly conspired with several others including Dante Nicholson, 51, former City of Angles vice president, and Rudra Sabaratnam, 64, who, with Mr. Bourseau, operated Intercare Health Systems, a healthcare company which operated City of Angels, to defraud Medicare and Medi-Cal by recruiting homeless people for unnecessary services and paying kickbacks.
A grand jury returned the 12-count indictment. If convicted of all counts, Mr. Bourseau and Mr. Nicholson face 65 years in prison and Intercare faces $6 million in fines.
Mr. Nicholson is scheduled for a February arraignment. Last month, Mr. Sabaratnam pleaded guilty to paying illegal kickbacks, and his co-defendant, Estill Mitts, 64, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud and money laundering.
Read the news release about the Los Angeles kickback scheme.
In Chicago, U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald announced the arrests of two physicians in unrelated fraud schemes that billed public and private insurers for more than $13 million, according to a news release for the United States Attorney Northern District of Illinois.
Burr Ridge, Ill., cardiologist Sushil Sheth, MD, was charged with healthcare fraud. Between 2002 and 2007, Dr. Sheth allegedly received $8.3 million from Medicare and $5.1 million for services not performed. Prosecutors said he allegedly obtained hospital patients’ confidential information without their knowledge or consent and hired others who billed Medicare and private insurers for services he never performed for patients he never treated.
Elmwood Park, Ill., general practitioner Otto Garcia Montenegro, MD, was charged with defrauding the Illinois Blues plan and other insurers of more than $500,000 between 2003 and 2007. Prosecutors alleged he created hundreds of bogus bills attempting to document services he never rendered.
Read the news release about the Chicago healthcare fraud scheme (pdf).
